


Skam DC Season 4 Episode 4: I Need Something To Believe In

by skamDC (bramgreenfeld)



Series: Skam DC: Season 4 [5]
Category: Original Work, SKAM (Norway)
Genre: Gen, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:29:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26819581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bramgreenfeld/pseuds/skamDC
Summary: Safiyya Bashir knows that this is going to be one of the most important years of her life. Junior year is one of the biggest things that colleges look at, and she’s determined to make it count. It should have been easy - she was the clear frontrunner for editor of the school newspaper this year, and there certainly aren’t any distractions in her love life. What she never expected was opposition from someone she’d tried hard to ignore, the return of old friends from her past - and that she might actually have a chance with the girl of her dreams.
Relationships: Kai Linwood/Jasper Markowitz, Safiyya Bashir/Ruby Rahim, Theo Rivera/Callum Wilder, Willa Liu/Holly Rojas Castillo
Series: Skam DC: Season 4 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1918819
Kudos: 6





	1. SUNDAY 2:29PM: MISSING PIECE

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4TH, 2:29PM

EXT. CORN MAZE

way it goes by Hippo Campus plays over a wide shot of a corn maze shaped like Spongebob. The camera zooms in to show SAFIYYA, WILLA, HOLLY, and THEO standing on a tall, fenced-in wooden platform towards the center. SAFIYYA is standing on her toes, trying to get a better look at the maze.

SAFIYYA  
I hate this fucking sponge.

THEO  
God, me too.

WILLA and HOLLY are looking over a paper map. A long pole with the number 4 is leaning against the side of the platform next to them.

WILLA  
Okay, I think we're here.

She points at a location on the map that's completely wrong. HOLLY nods.

HOLLY  
Which means we just have to take a left, a right, another right, a left...and then we should be good to go.

SAFIYYA  
From which direction?

HOLLY  
If we go down the steps behind me. If we go down the steps behind you, it's...I think two lefts, a right, and another left.

WILLA  
Wait, I have an idea.

THEO  
What?

WILLA  
A race.

SAFIYYA sighs.

SAFIYYA  
Seriously?

WILLA  
Yes! Holly and I will go this way, you and Theo will go that way, and we'll see who gets to the end first.

THEO  
But there's only one map.

WILLA  
You guys can take it. We're confident that we know the way.

HOLLY  
We are?

WILLA squeezes HOLLY'S hand.

WILLA  
Yes, we are.

SAFIYYA  
At least take the pole, then. So they can find you if you don't actually know the way.

HOLLY picks up the pole and hands THEO the map.

HOLLY  
See you on the other side?

THEO  
Not if we see you first.

HOLLY and WILLA walk down one side of the platform, and THEO and SAFIYYA walk down the other.

CUT TO:

SAFIYYA and THEO are in another area of the maze, the corn so tall that it feels almost enclosing. SAFIYYA is running her hand along it. She pauses.

SAFIYYA  
Hold on, is this a shortcut or something?

THEO glances over at it.

THEO  
I don't think it's intentional. Probably just some kids trying to cheat. I couldn't fit through it anyway.

SAFIYYA  
Damn.

They continue walking, THEO considering the map.

THEO  
It's really easy to feel like a third wheel with them.

SAFIYYA instantly knows what she means.

SAFIYYA  
Definitely. It's not like it's a bad thing - like, I'm happy for them and everything, but sometimes it just gets a little...

THEO  
Lonely?

SAFIYYA  
Lonely.

THEO keeps looking at the map rather than SAFIYYA as she walks.

THEO  
I've been feeling like that a lot more lately. Not just with them, but with everyone. Even Keira. I just feel like there's some kind of missing piece that's stopping me from connecting with people the way I used to, or the way I should be able to. And everyone knows what it is but me.

She looks up.

THEO  
Sorry, I'm kind of -

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
No! You don't have to apologize for talking. That's really - I feel the same way. Like, a lot. I'm kind of dreading homecoming because of it.

THEO lets out a long sigh.

THEO  
Homecoming, shit. I don't even really want to go.

SAFIYYA  
You don't have to.

THEO  
I feel like I do. I don't even have a dress, though.

SAFIYYA  
We could go shopping after this, maybe.

THEO shakes her head quickly.

THEO  
No, I can't - I mean, I have to get home.

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
Maybe we could -

THEO  
Wait, is that -

She points forward. SAFIYYA looks to see the corn maze's exit in the distance.

SAFIYYA  
Yes!

They both run for it.


	2. MONDAY 12:12PM: A SAFE PLACE

MONDAY, OCTOBER 5TH, 12:12PM

INT. BUCHANAN HIGH SCHOOL, BAND CLASSROOM

SAFIYYA pushes open the classroom door as quietly as possible, but it still squeaks. However, the sound cannot be heard over the noise coming from the band rehearsing - off-beat, out of tune, and with everyone playing completely different tempos. SAFIYYA just stands there for a moment, not really sure what to do.

The band finishes playing, and the students - most, if not all of whom are freshmen - instantly start chattering. MR. RODRIGUEZ, standing at the front of the room, sighs.

MR. RODRIGUEZ  
Guys, how many times do I have to tell you to not talk as soon as we're finished playing?

The band quiets down, although there's still a few scattered whispers.

MR. RODRIGUEZ  
Can anyone tell me what was wrong with that performance?

Silence. MR. RODRIGUEZ glances around the room, finally seeing SAFIYYA.

MR. RODRIGUEZ  
Oh, what's up, Safiyya?

SAFIYYA  
Not much. Is Kai around?

MR. RODRIGUEZ gestures towards the locker room.

MR. RODRIGUEZ  
He should be in there. If the doors are locked, yell at them for me, okay? They're not supposed to do that.

SAFIYYA  
Of course. I'm always up for yelling at Kai.

She walks over to the locker room doors. The door opens, but it cannot be heard over the sound of the band beginning to play again.

INT. BUCHANAN HIGH SCHOOL, BAND LOCKER ROOM

SAFIYYA steps into the locker room, narrowly avoiding tripping over a trumpet case lying open on the floor. KAI, JASPER, and CALLUM are sitting together in one corner, not noticing that SAFIYYA has entered. They're looking into one of the largest lockers in the room, one that would typically hold a tuba or something of equal size.

KAI  
Did you find it?

AUGUST (O.S.)  
No.

JASPER  
It has to be in there somewhere.

AUGUST (O.S.)  
I think there's a family of rats living in here. I don't want to hurt them.

JASPER  
You're not hurting the rats. If anything they're going to hurt you.

AUGUST (O.S.)  
Why would you say that?

KAI  
They won't hurt you. It's only Remy and his husband and kids. He just wants to make you a tasty fettuccine alfredo.

JASPER  
Please drop the link to your Ratatouille fanfiction.

KAI  
I'll send it in the group chat.

AUGUST (O.S.)  
I'm really sorry, guys, but I don't see it in here. Callum, do you have any idea where else it could be?

CALLUM shrugs. He's sitting in the corner with his arms crossed.

CALLUM  
I don't fucking know.

KAI looks over at him.

KAI  
Okay, what's going on with you today? You're all pissed off.

CALLUM  
It's just some shit with Theo.

AUGUST (O.S.)  
What happened?

CALLUM sighs.

CALLUM  
He's been hanging out with this dude in his psychology class a lot.

KAI  
Kayvan?

CALLUM nods.

CALLUM  
Yeah. _Him_.

AUGUST (O.S.)  
I don't think that him being friends with this new guy means that he cares about you any less.

CALLUM  
I guess. I just feel weird about it.

There is a shuffling sound from inside of the locker, and a moment later, a dust-covered AUGUST climbs out.

AUGUST  
I feel like - oh, hey, Safiyya!

The guys turn around, seeing SAFIYYA standing by the door.

SAFIYYA  
Hey. What were you doing in a locker?

AUGUST  
We put some of our sheet music together to make sure we wouldn't lose it and put it in here - this is my normal locker, I usually keep my trombone in here - and, well...

SAFIYYA  
You lost it.

AUGUST cringes.

AUGUST  
Yeah.

KAI leans back against JASPER'S chest.

KAI  
What are you doing here?

SAFIYYA  
Do you not want me here?

KAI  
No, I just -

SAFIYYA  
Because I don't really want to be here. Band kids are really loud.

JASPER raises his water bottle towards her.

JASPER  
She gets it.

SAFIYYA  
Anyway, Kai, why did you skip bio today?

KAI  
I didn't skip. We have a jazz band thing on Saturday and I had to rehearse.

SAFIYYA  
Whatever. Anyway, we got assigned a project, and Mrs. B told me to bring you the stuff for it.

KAI  
Oh, cool, thanks!

SAFIYYA puts her bag down on the ground and takes a folder out of it. She removes a packet of papers and hands it to KAI.

SAFIYYA  
It's like a biosphere thing. Have you heard of it?

KAI  
A little.

KAI flips through the pages.

KAI  
So basically we have to pick an ecosystem, and recreate a small version of it that can be a safe place for life?

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
And monitor it for two weeks, and write a report. It's a partner project, by the way. As in, with your seat partners.

KAI  
Oh, cool! We're going to kill it!

JASPER  
I hope you mean that metaphorically.

AUGUST  
Maybe you can make an ecosystem for the rat family living in my locker.

He leans backwards into the locker.

AUGUST  
Holy shit.

CALLUM  
What?

AUGUST reaches upwards, somehow withdrawing a small stack of papers from the ceiling.

AUGUST  
It got caught between the wall and the next locker?

KAI  
Shit, what?

AUGUST begins passing around the music.

AUGUST  
We totally won't suck now!

JASPER  
Will we?

SAFIYYA, seeing the boys begin to get caught up in their conversation, turns to leave.

KAI  
Safiyya, wait!

SAFIYYA looks back at him.

SAFIYYA  
Yeah?

KAI  
See you later? To work on the project?

SAFIYYA  
We can work on it in class.

KAI  
Then just to hang out?

SAFIYYA smiles.

SAFIYYA  
We'll see.

She exits the locker room.


	3. WEDNESDAY 1:19PM: OPINIONS

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7TH, 1:19PM

INT. BUCHANAN HIGH SCHOOL, JOURNALISM CLASSROOM

Everyone is sitting at their desks except for SAFIYYA, who stands at the front of the room. MS. ROBINS is notably absent. 

SAFIYYA  
Okay, so we need a few more articles - we've got the vice presidential debate tonight - 

NIA  
On it.

SAFIYYA  
Thank you for your sacrifice. Ethan, are you going to do that article about the sports protests?

ETHAN  
It'll be done by midnight. Or like two am.

SAFIYYA  
Great. Um, does anyone else have any last minute features or anything that they want to do?

Silence. SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
Okay, cool. If anyone else has any articles they're still working on, they need to be in by the time class starts on Friday. I need time to edit them.

MATT  
Wait, one thing.

SAFIYYA  
Yeah?

MATT  
I know she's absent today, but do you think that Sophie's article about climate change might be a little too opinionated? I mean, she's right about all of it, but she barely cited any sources, and it's kind of - 

SAFIYYA  
The article she wrote for the opinions section? No, I don't actually think it's too opinionated. Maybe you could talk to her about it - 

Something occurs to her.

SAFIYYA  
Why were you looking at it? Did she ask you to read it, or...

MATT shakes his head.

MATT  
Nah, it was in the shared drive and I - 

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
Ms. Robins and I are the only ones who are supposed to look at articles once they're in the shared drive. You know that, Matt.

MATT  
I just wanted to see what she had written.

SAFIYYA  
You'd find out when it was printed or posted like everyone else. It's not your job to look over articles once they've been submitted.

MATT  
Okay, God.

SAFIYYA closes her eyes, trying to regain her train of thought.

SAFIYYA  
Okay. Um, for the rest of class, I think we should just try to finish whatever's left of the articles. I'm going to start looking at what's in the shared drive, so if you want me to see anything, just toss it in there.

She returns to her seat, taking out her laptop. She navigates into the shared drive and clicks on the Opinions folder, going to the article Matt was talking about. She scrolls down, skimming it quickly. She sighs and reluctantly leaves a comment on it - "Do you have any sources for this?"


	4. THURSDAY 2:47PM: JUST YOU AND ME

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8TH, 2:46PM

EXT. BUCHANAN HIGH SCHOOL

Kids are streaming out of the school. SAFIYYA is among them - she is alone, but has her head up, looking for something. Finally, she spots it.

SAFIYYA  
Theo, hey!

THEO, standing by the curb looking at her phone, doesn't hear her. SAFIYYA begins to make her way through the crowd as quickly as possible.

Finally, she is able to reach THEO.

SAFIYYA  
Hey.

THEO looks up, putting her phone away.

THEO  
Hey, what's up?

SAFIYYA  
Well, I've had a thought.

THEO grins.

THEO  
Have you?

SAFIYYA  
I have. It happens sometimes. Anyway, homecoming is tomorrow, right?

THEO rolls her eyes.

THEO  
Ugh, yeah.

SAFIYYA  
Who says that we have to go? You haven't bought your ticket yet, have you?

THEO shakes her head.

THEO  
I was just going to donate some cans of food at the door.

SAFIYYA  
I was thinking that maybe we could do something else. Hang out, no couples, just you and me. We haven't done that in a while.

THEO smiles.

THEO  
We really haven't. That sounds awesome.

SAFIYYA begins to smile as well.

SAFIYYA  
Yeah. Fuck homecoming.

THEO  
Fuck homecoming!

SAFIYYA laughs.

SAFIYYA  
I'll text you, okay?

THEO nods.

THEO  
Okay, cool. See you tomorrow?

SAFIYYA  
See you!

They high five, walking away in opposite directions.


	5. FRIDAY 5:04PM: THE STORY

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 5:04PM

EXT. PARK

I Wish by Hayley Kiyoko plays as we zoom in on SAFIYYA and THEO sitting on a park bench, talking and eating ice cream cones.

SAFIYYA  
You were right. It's not too cold for ice cream.

THEO  
It's never too cold for ice cream. I wish that Rita's hadn't closed for the season.

SAFIYYA  
I've never had Rita's.

THEO  
Girl, you're missing out. It's so good.

She rotates the ice cream cone around in her hand.

THEO  
It's been a while since I've hung out with anyone like this. Just the two of us.

SAFIYYA frowns.

SAFIYYA  
Really? I thought that you and Keira hung out together all the time.

THEO shakes her head.

THEO  
Not as much anymore. She's my best friend, just as much as she was in middle school. Like, we're not growing apart or anything. That's not how it feels. I don't know. Maybe I'm the one doing something wrong.

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
I don't think so.

THEO shrugs.

THEO  
Maybe.

She sighs.

THEO  
You don't know about my dad, do you?

SAFIYYA frowns.

SAFIYYA  
No.

THEO  
He...um, he died when I was in eighth grade.

SAFIYYA  
Shit.

THEO smiles wryly.

THEO  
Yeah. It's just me and my mom and my brother and sisters now. And my mom works so much that it's usually on me to take care of them. It's a lot to figure out how to balance everything. And I've never really talked about it this much for this long before, so that's a lot, too.

SAFIYYA reaches out, taking her hand.

SAFIYYA  
Is there a reason that you don't talk about it?

THEO shrugs.

THEO  
I don't know. Maybe it's just that I think the idea of people knowing me - really knowing me - is kind of terrifying. It makes me feel like they can see right through me.

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
That's exactly it.

She leans back against the bench.

SAFIYYA  
That whole thing you said about balancing everything out - I get that. I really get it. Like, I'm a Black bisexual Muslim girl, and I don't really know how to fit it all together - actually no, that's not right. I know exactly how to fit it all together. I just don't know how to make other people understand. And it really gets kind of lonely sometimes. I've never really had that many friends before. The opposite, actually. In my freshman year...I went to Potomac Bend, actually, at the beginning of the year. But the bullying got so bad that I transferred.

THEO frowns.

THEO  
I never knew that.

SAFIYYA  
Hardly anyone does. It's the whole "being known" thing you were talking about, you know? It's okay now, anyway. I'm not really bullied at Buchanan. But I do feel lonely sometimes. A lot of the time, actually. Even when I'm with you guys. Sometimes I'll want to talk about something that's going on in my life, or someone I have a crush on, or just whatever, and I just...I just won't.

THEO squeezes her hand.

THEO  
I'm really sorry, Safiyya.

SAFIYYA smiles.

SAFIYYA  
It's not your fault. Or, it kind of is, but not on purpose. Does that make sense?

THEO  
Not really.

SAFIYYA  
I don't think it's going to.

THEO  
Seriously, though. You can talk about whatever you want. And if you don't want to talk about it with everyone, you can talk about it with me. Or with one of the other girls if you don't feel like dealing with me.

SAFIYYA laughs.

THEO  
We'll understand. Or maybe we won't, but we'll try to understand. We'll listen. I promise.

SAFIYYA smiles.

SAFIYYA  
Okay.

THEO  
Okay.

She lets go of SAFIYYA'S hand.

THEO  
So who's the crush?

SAFIYYA looks startled.

SAFIYYA  
Um, no one! That was just, you know, a hypothetical.

THEO shakes her head.

THEO  
No way. I saw that face you made. There's someone, I know there is.

SAFIYYA sighs, but she's smiling.

SAFIYYA  
Fine. There's someone.

THEO  
I knew it. Do I know them?

SAFIYYA  
You do. And that's all I'm saying.

THEO  
I bet I can guess.

SAFIYYA  
I bet you can't.

THEO  
Let me try.

SAFIYYA  
Fine. Try.

THEO  
It's your brother's friend, right? Ruby?

SAFIYYA  
...fuck.

THEO laughs.

THEO  
See? I told you I could guess!

SAFIYYA  
How did you know? Am I that obvious?

THEO shakes her head.

THEO  
Not that obvious. I just know you.

SAFIYYA  
See, there's the scariest part of being known. You can guess all my crushes and I just have to deal with it.

SAFIYYA'S phone rings, and she glances down at it. She smiles, which THEO notices instantly.

THEO  
What is it?

SAFIYYA  
It's Ruby.

THEO gasps.

THEO  
What? We summoned her by talking about her, oh my god.

SAFIYYA'S finger hovers over the answer button.

SAFIYYA  
Should I...?

THEO  
Yes! Pick up, pick up!

SAFIYYA presses the answer button, still smiling at THEO.

SAFIYYA  
Hey!

RUBY  
Hi, is this a bad time?

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
No, no, of course not.

RUBY  
Great - um, I don't really know what to do with Jameel.

SAFIYYA  
I usually don't either. What's up?

RUBY  
He's drunk. As in, totally wasted.

SAFIYYA frowns, sitting up straigher.

SAFIYYA  
Wait, what? Jameel?

RUBY  
Yeah, I know, it's -

She sighs.

RUBY  
He wants to go home, but I know that that isn't a good idea.

SAFIYYA rubs her forehead, letting out a groan.

THEO  
(quietly)  
Is everything okay?

SAFIYYA glances over at her.

SAFIYYA  
Ruby, one second -

She removes the phone from her ear.

SAFIYYA  
Jameel is completely wasted. He wants to go home, but - no. I don't know where else he could go.

THEO frowns.

THEO  
Isn't Ruby Aaliyah's sister? Is her apartment close to where they are?

SAFIYYA stares at her for a moment.

SAFIYYA  
How can you say that you aren't smart? You're a genius.

She holds her phone up to her ear again.

SAFIYYA  
Are you anywhere near Aaliyah's place?

RUBY  
Shit, I didn't even think of that. We're maybe ten minutes away. I'll call her.

SAFIYYA  
I can meet you there.

RUBY  
Great. Jameel -

She hangs up mid-sentence. SAFIYYA puts her phone back into her pocket. THEO stands up.

THEO  
Are we going?

SAFIYYA  
Yeah.

THEO holds her hand out. SAFIYYA takes it, letting THEO pull her to her feet. They walk away from the bench together.

INT. AALIYAH'S APARTMENT, HALLWAY

SAFIYYA knocks on the door, and KELL opens it a few moments later.

KELL  
Gay college students' home for wayward high schoolers, how may I help you?

SAFIYYA  
Is my brother -

KELL steps aside.

KELL  
Yeah, he's here.

SAFIYYA comes into the apartment, walking right past KELL.

KELL  
Nice to see you too!

THEO follows SAFIYYA, but pauses next to KELL.

THEO  
Hi.

KELL  
Hey.

THEO continues into the apartment, leaving KELL behind.

INT. AALIYAH'S APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM

SAFIYYA steps into the room with THEO close behind. She sees JAMEEL lying on the couch and comes closer to him.

SAFIYYA  
Hey -

RUBY (O.S.)  
He's not going to answer you. He's basically dead right now.

The girls turn around. RUBY and AALIYAH are walking down the hallway towards them.

RUBY  
But, on the bright side, we won't wake him up by talking.

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
So what now?

AALIYAH  
He can stay here tonight. I don't mind, Kell doesn't mind. Jenna's at a class right now, but she won't mind. She owes me one anyway.

SAFIYYA lets out a breath.

SAFIYYA  
Thank you so, so much.

AALIYAH  
It's no problem at all.

RUBY  
It's going to be his problem trying to figure out what to tell your parents in the morning.

SAFIYYA frowns.

SAFIYYA  
Shit. I can -

RUBY  
Safiyya. It's his problem.

SAFIYYA shrugs.

SAFIYYA  
Fine.

She glances over at JAMEEL again - he's turned away from her so that she cannot see his face.

EXT. AALIYAH'S APARTMENT

SAFIYYA, RUBY, and THEO are exiting the building, RUBY carrying her skateboard.

THEO  
I'm going to head home.

SAFIYYA  
I can walk with you.

THEO shakes her head quickly.

THEO  
No, it's fine. I'm fine on my own. You and Ruby can walk together.

SAFIYYA frowns at her, and THEO raises her eyebrows.

RUBY  
Bye, then. See you soon, hopefully.

THEO  
See you soon!

She shoots a quick grin at SAFIYYA and walks away. SAFIYYA and RUBY are left standing there alone.

RUBY  
Um, I'm going this way.

She gestures to their right. SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
Me too.

RUBY smiles.

RUBY  
Cool.

They walk away together.

EXT. DC STREETS

The camera follows SAFIYYA and RUBY as they walk. The leaves on the trees have started to turn orange, red, and yellow, and their feet crunch against the leaves that have already fallen as they walk.

SAFIYYA looks over at RUBY, and finds that RUBY is looking back. She clears her throat.

SAFIYYA  
What was Jameel drinking?

RUBY shrugs.

RUBY  
Vodka, I think.

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
It's really weird. It doesn't seem like something he would do.

RUBY nods.

RUBY  
Yeah.

SAFIYYA looks down again. She sees RUBY'S skateboard and points at one of the stickers on it - a cartoon axolotl eating a potato chip.

SAFIYYA  
That's a really cool sticker. The axolotl one.

RUBY looks down to see what sticker she means.

RUBY  
Oh, thanks! It's one of my favorite ones. I keep meaning to ask - have you ever skated before?

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
Definitely not. I don't have the balance.

RUBY  
Have you ever tried?

SAFIYYA  
...No?

EXT. SKATEPARK

we fell in love in october by girl in red plays as we see SAFIYYA standing on RUBY'S skateboard, RUBY standing next to her. RUBY is speaking to her, but we cannot hear what she is saying. SAFIYYA pushes off and wobbles instantly, almost falling, but RUBY holds her steady. After a few tries, RUBY finally lets go and SAFIYYA manages to stay steady. She smiles widely, with RUBY, running alongside her, looking just as happy.

SAFIYYA (V.O.)  
I have kind of a hard question.

RUBY (V.O.)  
That's kind of scary.

The song fades out. The two girls are sitting at the edge of the bowl, their legs dangling.

SAFIYYA  
I really need to know, though.

RUBY  
Go for it, then.

SAFIYYA  
What happened between you guys and the twins?

RUBY lets out a breath.

RUBY  
That _is_ a hard question.

SAFIYYA just stares at her, waiting.

RUBY  
I wasn't that involved in it, actually. It was mostly between Jameel and Kayvan. They were always super, super close. Way closer than the rest of us were. And I don't know exactly what happened, but one day they were hanging out together, and one thing led to another, and...Kayvan kissed him.

SAFIYYA draws in a sharp breath.

SAFIYYA  
Oh.

RUBY  
Yeah. And I don't really know what happened after that. It wasn't Jameel's fault, at least, I'm pretty sure it wasn't. But somehow people started finding out. Gave them both a lot of shit about it. Kayvan had to delete his Instagram, even. And...yeah. I kind of got caught in the middle of everything. I stuck with Jameel because I wasn't really sure what else to do. And I didn't really get to talk to either of them at all before Kayvan and Nadia transferred.

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
And at the game?

RUBY  
I just...I don't even know what happened. I ran into Kayvan, and I tried to talk to him like normal, but he kind of snapped, and I snapped back. I guess I should have known that it's never really going to be normal again.

She sighs.

RUBY  
And that's the story.

SAFIYYA draws her knees up to her chest and rests her head against them.

SAFIYYA  
One more question.

RUBY  
Yeah?

SAFIYYA  
Did Jameel start distancing himself from Kayvan after he kissed him? Or after people started finding out about it?

RUBY shrugs.

RUBY  
I have no idea, honestly. But I don't think that Kayvan liking boys bothered him. Like, he knows that I'm bi, and he doesn't have a problem with it.

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
I'm bi, too.

RUBY glances over at her.

RUBY  
And Jameel doesn't know?

SAFIYYA shakes her head.

SAFIYYA  
No one in my family knows. Basically everyone else does, though. And now that includes you.

RUBY  
Felt that.

She leans backwards onto her hands. The sun is beginning to set, the sky streaked through with pink clouds.

RUBY  
And like, people try to tell be that I can't be both bi and religious. But how am I supposed to not be both? I might not be the best Muslim, I might not always pray five times a day, I might not go to the mosque as often as I should. But I'm trying to be better, and I - I need something to believe in, you know? The world doesn't make sense to me without it.

SAFIYYA nods.

SAFIYYA  
Right? Like, did you know that in cockroach brains, there are nine different types of antibiotic molecules that are stronger than any type of penicillin we have today? It's...every single part of the universe is just so complex. Even a cockroach's brain has some kind of bigger meaning. I can't believe that something like this could just be some kind of accident. I literally cannot do it.

RUBY is smiling.

RUBY  
I was wondering what cockroach brains had to do with anything, but you brought it back around.

SAFIYYA laughs.

SAFIYYA  
And about what you said - I spent a lot of time when I was younger trying to figure out if I really fit into Islam. Or if Islam fit with me. But it's a part of me, you know? And even if people can't agree with a Muslim girl being bisexual, then screw them. Because that's who I am.

We see SAFIYYA on the skateboard again, the sun almost fully set. RUBY is running alongside her, laughing.

EXT. BASHIR HOUSE

Pink + White by Frank Ocean plays as we again follow SAFIYYA and RUBY. They come to a stop in front of the house and turn to face each other. RUBY clears her throat awkwardly.

RUBY  
Um...I had something I was going to say, but I forgot what it was.

SAFIYYA laughs.

SAFIYYA  
You can tell me later.

RUBY  
I will.

They keep standing there looking at each other.

RUBY  
Are you looking into my eyes right now?

SAFIYYA raises her eyebrows.

SAFIYYA  
I am looking into your eyes right now.

RUBY  
Okay, cool.

SAFIYYA  
Cool?

RUBY laughs. The sound of the front door opening can be heard.

SAFIYYA'S MOTHER (O.S.)  
Safiyya? Is that you?

SAFIYYA  
It's me!

She turns back to RUBY.

SAFIYYA  
So...bye, then.

RUBY  
Bye.

SAFIYYA runs into the house. RUBY watches her go with a smile, then turns, walking away.

CUT TO END CREDITS.


End file.
